12lb walleye from Bay of Quinte - Caught by Kyle Billingsley

My cousin Kyle has been hard water angling this winter.  I recently became aware that he hooked into a huge of Bay of Quinte pickerel. I don’t have many details yet, but his wife tells me he was jigging for the behemoth that weighed in at 12 lbs! Great job Kyle! Thanks for the photo Di.

Muskoka Outdoors visitors – I would love to post pictures of the fish you have been catching through the ice this year. Email them to me using the Contact  link below.

The Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (O.F.A.H.) is encouraging everyone to take advantage of the upcoming provincial Family Day holiday and license-free fishing opportunity to get outdoors during Ontario Family Fishing Weekend, February 13-15, 2010.

“Ice fishing is a great Canadian winter pastime and a very family-friendly activity,” said Mike Reader, O.F.A.H. Executive Director. “We invite families across Ontario to take the opportunity to head out to a nearby lake or pond during Ontario Family Fishing Weekend and drop a line. It’s a terrific way to connect with our natural resources.” “If you’ve never tried fishing, this is the perfect time,” said the Honourable Linda Jeffrey, Minister of Natural Resources, of the upcoming license-free fishing opportunity.

Fast Facts:

• Safety first. Check conditions before you head out and frequently while out. Clear ice should be at least 10 cm (4 inches) for walking. Anything less is not safe. Carry rescue equipment and a whistle or cell phone.
• Across Ontario, Canadian residents do not require a fishing licence from February 13-15, but must follow all other fishing regulations, which can be found in the Fishing Ontario, 2010 Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary. Copies are available online at www.ontario.ca/fishing and in print from ServiceOntario centres.
• OFFW events are currently registered for the following communities: Bancroft, Cambridge, Cardiff, Espanola, Ennismore, Hearst, Honey Harbour, Marmora, New Liskeard, Ottawa, Pefferlaw, Trout Creek and Verona. Other family-friendly events may also be planned so check your local listings. Visit www.familyfishingweekend.com for details.
• Ontario Family Fishing Weekend is an initiative of the Ministry of Natural Resources. The program includes a winter weekend and a summer event in July which runs concurrent with National Fishing Week. The OFFW Steering Committee is comprised of the O.F.A.H., MNR, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and the Canadian Sportfishing Industry Association.

With 100,000 members, subscribers and supporters, and 660 member clubs, the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters is the leading nonprofit fishing, hunting and conservation-based organization in Ontario. To learn more, visit www.ofah.org.

*Press Release Used With Permission

Jacob and his father scored big while ice fishing on Mary Lake this week! Both anglers were excited to pull out two of Mary Lake’s popular sport fish: A Northern Pike and Lake Trout.

I was checking around for local ice fishing updates when I heard that Jacob had hooked into these fish. They were fishing from a ’secret location’ somewhere on Mary Lake in 35 feet of water. Jigs tipped with live bait tempted the trout and pike to strike. There was 8 – 10 inches of ice.

The duo braved a blizzard to reach the sanctuary of their hut. Jacob wondered if the changing weather system was a contributing factor to making these fish (and others) hit their jigs.

Jacob Hehir holding his hard water Northern Pike

A great lake trout from Mary Lake!

I was able to get an interview with 13 year old Jacob and he patiently answered my questions about fishing with his dad. He has been fishing as long as he can remember. His mother shares that he had several visits to an ice hut as a baby. Jacob appreciates being able to spend quality time with his father. Not only is he able to learn more about fishing from his dad, but he enjoys the freedom of being able to share ‘life issues’ in the shelter of their ice hut or boat.

Jacob’s top 2 game fish to pursue are smallmouth bass and lake trout. For exciting summer  bass action, he recommends fishing during the early morning calm with top water ’spooks’. His tips for new ice anglers are simple:

1. Dress Warmly
2. Watch Your Lines

Before I finished my interview, Jacob wanted me to be sure to include a ’shout-out’ to one of his favorite fishing mentors, Louie Miceli.

Thanks for your time Jacob! I appreciate it.

*Note – If you have would like a photo of your ice fishing success stories to appear on my blog, please email them to me using the contact information below.

With a pending ice fishing season looming, how can a soft water angler survive until ice out? Do not fear anglers of the open water. There is hope. I have been tracking my progress while dealing with the SWW (soft water withdrawal) syndrome below.

Week 1

Pike On The Fly will help fill the open water void.

Having just spotted the first ice hut on Mary Lake, my sunny day turned blue. I waved to my ice and cold-loving fishing brethren as I drove past the lake’s scenic wharf. They politely waved back across the glassy water without skipping a beat on their jigging patterns. The cold – is not an issue in the least. This time of hard water is yours. Returning home, in a slightly depressed state, I resorted to watching some fishing DVD’s I had in my collection. Three hours later I was feeling better about myself and my self diagnosed condition. One movie in particular stands out in my mind as being very well done. If you have not seen or purchased it – please consider it. It’s called, Pike On The Fly, by Barry Reynolds. It has a perfect combination of instructional items and heart-pounding pike fishing action. There is a large number of huge pike caught in the movie and 8 of them are over 50 inches!

Survive Week 1 by watching, buying or renting some fishing videos.

Week 2

The videos were great. This week, my issue has been, the ‘call to action’ the movies have inspired within me. Dust off your fly tying equipment and tie these trout flies recommended by expert anglers and fly fishing authors I have had an opportunity to interview on my blog. I asked them a simple question: If you could only take one or two flies on a body of water you have never fished before – what would it be?

Mark Williams (author of So Many Fish So Little Time )
“It’s hardly fair to take away from me the boxes and boxes of flies I’ve tied and collected over the years. Rivers change hour to hour and you’re going to stick me with just one fly? Fine. I’ll take a size 12 Ausable Wulff and I’ll catch plenty of trout. But I’m stashing a Rio Grande Trude in one pocket and a beat-up Goddard Caddis in another.”

Rick Passek (author of Freshman Flyfisher Series)

Adams Dry Fly from Wikipedia

“This can be a tough question for me because I would research the stream before I went, But let us say I didn’t. I would take a Hares ear Nymph (picture right) and a Tom Thumb, why you ask, simple. The hairs ear and the Tom Thumb are an searching patterns. They don’t represent any one insect perfectly, but represent many insects well. These two flies will be taking by trout as Caddis Flies, May Flies, Mosquitoes, Midges, along with many others.”

Ed Quigley (author of In The Company of Rivers)
“Probably the Muddler Minnow because of its versatility. If gooked up with floatant, it can be used as a dry fly with what I call the ‘plunk-and-twitch’ effect on smooth water. In other words the plunk gets the trout’s attention; the twitch says, “I’m alive!”. Without the floatant, it becomes a streamer cast either upstream or down-and-across.”

Randall Kadish (author of The Flycaster Who Tried To Make Peace With The World)
“Initially, I would have two choices: An Adams, which takes fish on any river, or a Woolly Bugger. Because, I don’t know the stream, and because most takes are subsurface, I’d choose a Woolly Bugger and cover as much water as possible.”

Pace yourself through Week 2 by tying these effective fly patterns.

-To be continued-

The Huntsville Forester published that Brandon Corry hooked into the massive 20.5-pounder through the ice last weekend. Nice work Brandon! For more great stories and articles from a Huntsville perspective – visit the Huntsville Forester today.